The Provision of Prayer

The Provision of Prayer Matthew 6:11  Prayer is a wonderful privilege and it should be a major priority.  Let me give you a definition. o Prayer is not just talking to God but with God. o It is not just saying words with our eyes closed and our heads bowed.

 I am sure most of you have probably used a phone this week.

o If you called someone this week on a telephone you went through a process. o You picked up the phone, o You dialed the number you were calling, o Someone had to answer, o Then you could converse.

 Unlike a phone call Prayer isn't just picking up the phone,

o Dialing heaven by talking into the air, o There is a process to be followed o There must be a connection made. o The Lord must hear or we have not prayed.

 If we are going to connect with heaven in prayer, we must understand this passage.  Jesus is teaching us how to pray by sharing with us several petitions.

 Notice in verses 9 and 10 that the petitions relate to…The Nature of God. They focus on… o Our Relationship to God "our father" o Our Reverence for God "hallowed be they name" o Our Resignation before God "thy kingdom come, thy will be done"  In verses 11-13, note that these petitions relate to…The Needs of Man.  tonight we are going to hone in on the first of the petitions that deals with the needs of man…(v. 11) "Give us this day our daily bread."  Some may think it is unnecessary to take such a petition seriously.  Do we need to pray in this way? Yes, by all means yes!  We need to see that this example encompasses more than just "bread", but refers to all of our necessities, all of our needs.  It should challenge us in three ways. 2 I. There has to be A Commitment to God's Priorities

A.The sequence of these requests is significant. It's …

1."Thy name",

2."Thy kingdom",

3."Thy will",

4.Then it is "Give…"

B.If our attitude is self-centered in prayer, there will be no power in prayer.

1.Prayer is an opportunity for us to conform our priorities to God's priorities.  Matthew 6:33, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

II. There has to be A Contentment with God's Provision I heard of a Quaker who was amazed as he watched a new neighbor moving in. They were unloading truck after truck. After a while the Quaker decided to introduce himself and welcome the new neighbor. After the introductions, The Quaker said, "If thou ever needest anything let me know and I will tell thee how thou canst live without it."

A.It is increasingly more difficult to be content.

1.There is so much stuff out there to possess. I heard about a bumper sticker that said, "When I die bury at Wal-Mart so my wife will come and visit me.

2.The problem is that most of us won't be satisfied with bread, we want cake. a)We can convince ourselves that we deserve more than we have. b)I don't want what I deserve. If I got that from God I would have nothing. Hebrews 13:5,6 tells us: "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

3.That should be our attitude. Let's guard against discontentment with God's provision. Let's not turn up our noses at what God gives us. 3

III. There has to be A Confidence in God's Power

A.Let's be assured that "Our Father" has the readiness and resources to meet our need.

1.There is no limit to the treasure of blessing that He can bestow upon us.

2.Heaven will never run out of a) Grace, peace, b)Love, forgiveness, c)Goodness, power, d)Wisdom, and strength. e)God is able to meet your need. Many years ago while crossing the Atlantic Ocean on an ocean liner, a preacher was asked to speak to the first class passengers. At the captains request he spoke on the subject of "Answered Prayer." An agnostic who was present at the service asked his friends what they thought of the message. He said that he didn't believe a word of it. That afternoon the preacher was to speak again. The agnostic decided to go to the service claiming he just wanted to hear what the "babbler would say this time." On his way to the service he put two oranges in his pocket. As he made his way to the meeting he passed an elderly woman asleep. Her hands were open, so in fun the agnostic put those two oranges in the woman's outstretched palms. After the service he saw the lady happily eating one of the pieces of fruit. "You seem to be enjoying that orange," he remarked with a smile. "Yes sir," she replied. "My Father is very good to me." "Your Father? Surely your father is not alive at your age." "Praise God, He is very much alive," she said. "What do you mean?" She gave the following explanation: "I've been sea sick for days and I was asking God to somehow send me an orange. I guess I fell asleep while I was praying and when I woke up I found that He had not only sent me one orange but two!"  Close  We can be assured that there is nothing that lies beyond the reach of prayer except that which is outside of the will of God.  One last thing, Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 that man cannot live by bread alone.  We have greater needs than just our physical needs. We all have spiritual needs that only Jesus can meet and satisfy. Jesus is the bread of life! 4